Gone with the wind style
by Norwegianne
Summary: Post-Sandcastles in the sand. "How about we take one day at the time, and do it ‘Gone with the wind’ style?"


Spoilers for Sandcastles in the Sand, written after that episode.

In retrospect, Robin doesn't really know how it happened.

First they were watching her music video over and over and over, finding new things to make fun of during each rerun… and then suddenly they were kissing.

Granted, Barney had turned out to be uncommonly sweet that evening – supportive when she'd needed it – but being supportive never really was any warrant for kissing. If that had been the case, she would've been making out with Lily left and right.

But the kissing with Barney…and the things that followed the kissing… She doesn't really know how or why it happened. Maybe it was the alcohol? She would have used that excuse, if it hadn't been for the fact that Barney hadn't really been drinking at McLaren's that night.

And even if she can explain away the kissing, she can't do it with what happened after the kissing. She's pretty sure that she doesn't have a logical explanation for that one.

The next morning was awkward, to say the least. Barney – the guy who never spends nights, because it can be interpreted as being in a relationship, and as everybody knows Barney doesn't do relationships – spent the night.

She knows that he had plenty of time during the night to leave, and she also knows that he knew that she wouldn't have blamed him if he did. The fact that he was still there… she doesn't really know what it means.

"Uh…Good morning?"

"Good morning," Barney beams back. He jumps out of bed, and Robin pulls the sheet up a bit to cover things he's almost certainly seen before. "I'm almost hesitant to say this, Scherbatsky, because you look pretty darn good in your birthday suit, but time to suit up! We're playing laser tag today."

"Uh, ok." She bites her lip and wonders whether or not they're going to talk about the night before. It's not something she wants to do, but it does seem to be rather logical.

"Together, we'll cream those little brats, like they've never been creamed before. They're never going to know what hit them." He pauses for a second and looks at Robin. "You're not going to be a girl about this, are you?"

He gestures between them, without saying anything more.

Robin thinks about it for a second. If he's not going to make a big deal out of it, neither is she. They're friends. Admittedly, friends who are close, have fun together and astonishing chemistry in bed, if the aches in her body are any indication, but still, first and foremost friends.

"Nah, I'm good." Still she wraps the sheet around her before she gets out of bed. Nakedness between friends is one thing when it is leading to something else; it's not something she wants to contemplate in daylight.

They end up having a late late breakfast somewhere – breakfast is something friends do, brunch is for couples, they both agree– and then go and play laser tag.

The following evening they all meet at McLaren's, as they usually do. Barney waits for a lull in the conversation, and for all of them to have their mouth filled with beer, before he calmly tells them: "I slept with Scherbatsky."

He's apparently timed his announcement well, because Ted, Marshall and Lily are spitting their beer all over the table.

"Why would you go and do that?" Lily gets her bearing back first, and, since she's sitting next to him, she takes a swing at him. "Robin is hurting right now. She has enough on her plate without adding a night at your porn-infested place to it."

Robin sits across from them, her mouth gaping open. She had thought that this was something Barney wouldn't want to talk about – yet, by bringing it up as a topic of discussion, he's doing just that.

"It wasn't at my place," Barney protests. "Not that Scherbatsky would have had any problem with that, anyway."

Robin shakes her head, "I'm sorry? What?"

"You slept with Barney?" Ted asks.

"No," Robin scoffs and giggles. Then she sighs and rolls her eyes at Barney, because she clearly cannot lie to her friends. Especially not after Ted outed her. "Yes."

"Okay," Ted purses his lips and nods.

Robin wonders what is going through his head. It can't be easy to hear that one of your friends have slept with your ex-girlfriend – she's not really sure what she would have done if Ted had slept with one of her friends.

"Anyway," Barney leans back and grins. "I just thought you all should know, since I plan on repeating the experience. Often."

"What?" Robin echoes in with the rest of them.

"Well, it's not often I find someone who likes it, how shall I put this, a tad unconventional, can play laser tag with me afterwards, will suit up, and enjoys a good cigar. Face it, Scherbatsky, we're awesome together."

"But… but…" Robin splutters. "What about the whole 'couples do brunch" thing?"

"Have I taught you nothing?" he sighs and grins. "We're simply too awesome for any kind of relationship brunching."

"Brunch is one of the better things," Marshall protests. "I remember when Lily and I were broken up…"

"We slept together once… er… one night. Don't you think it's a bit soon to contemplate being in a relationship?" She manages to get it out, but she can tell from Lily's worried look that she's not quite as calm as she could wish for and possibly sounding a bit shrill.

He's the man who's been avoiding them like the plague for as long as she's known him – and he's been a comfortable presence in her life because of it. Now he's turning everything around and she's not sure she likes it.

"When you know something is right, you know something is right," Barney shrugs, and takes a sip of his drink. "I might not have the greatest track record there is, but I can be in a relation…"

He gets a pinched look on his face.

"If you can't say it…" Lily ponders with a small smile. "Can you ireally/i do it?"

"A relationship isn't like having sex, Lily," Ted rolls his eyes. "I'm pretty sure you can be in one without actually saying the word."

"You know what," Robin gets up. "I've had enough of this. I'll talk to you when you've come to your senses."

She walks away from the table, and can hear some discussion happening back there before she makes her way out the door.

Robin has tried to hail a cab three times, and failed all three of them, by the time Barney makes it outside.

"Good, you're still here," he grabs her arm as if that's going to make her listen.

"I can't get a cab."

"I can." He hails the next cab, and it is the same cabbie they always have.

"How'd you?"

"It's not important," he waves her question away and guides her into the familiar cab. "What's important is that Lily, Ted and Marshall mentioned that I should come after you, because that's what boyfriends do, apparently."

"Barney," she can feel the tears come. "You're very sweet about this, but you're not really my boyfriend."

"I could be," he says. "I meant what I said in there, you know. To my place, Ranjit."

"Yes, sir."

"Barney, maybe I'm not ready for a steady relationship. The thing with Ted ended because of it, and I'm not really the steady girlfriend type of girl."

"Let's worry about that later," he strokes her hair and she finds herself leaning into him. "How about we take one day at the time, and do it 'Gone with the wind' style?"

"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn?" she asks.

"No," he purses his lips and shakes his head. "I was thinking more along the lines of let's think about that tomorrow."

She shrugged. "Okay, I can do that."

"Good," he grins. "I hope you realize, Scherbatsky that the two of us together, well, it is going to be legen… wait for it…dary."

Robin rolls her eyes, and can see Ranjit smile at them in the mirror. She and Barney might not last long, or really be together at all, but it will certainly never be boring.


End file.
